News

Today Ibram Garunov, Judge of the Supreme Court of Dagestan, has announced his verdict to Rasil Mamedrizaev, a resident of Miskindzha village, Dokuzparin District of Dagestan, suspected of murdering Farid Babaev. The court has supported the prosecution and appointed a punishment in the form of 16 years of tight security colony.

A driver who happened to be an eyewitness of the collision of an armoured troop-carrier (ATC) with two VAZ passenger cars in Ingushetia told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent by telephone that a slippery road and inaccurate ATC's driving were the causes of the accident.

Today in Baku, the police have detained a group of activists from the youth organization of the oppositional "Musavat" Party, who tried to hold an unauthorized protest action in front of the office of the National Television and Radio Board (NTRB) of Azerbaijan. The "Caucasian Knot" correspondent reports that the action was held in protest against suspension from January 1, 2009, of broadcasting in local frequencies of radio stations Liberty, Voice of America and BBC.

In Dagestan, the public prosecutor demanded 16 years of imprisonment in a tight security colony for Rasil Mamedrizaev, who was found guilty yesterday, on January 20, by jurymen of murdering Farid Babaev, leader of the Dagestan branch of the "Yabloko" Party.

The action in memory of assassinated advocate Markelov and journalist Baburova held yesterday, on January 20, in the capital of Chechnya moved a proposal to rename streets in their honour.

On January 20, late at night, Novruzali Mamedov, 70, head of the Talysh Cultural Centre in Azerbaijan and editor-in-chief of the "Talyshi Sado" newspaper, was released from dungeon ahead of term. He is serving his 10 years of imprisonment for state treason.

On January 20, the car model VAZ-2107, which was hijacked by unknown criminals who executed father and son Terkhoev on January 19, in Sunzha District of Ingushetia, was found in the southwest of Chechnya.

Anastasiya Baburova, an off-the-staff employee of the "Novaya Gazeta", who was wounded on January 19 in the centre of Moscow, during Markelov's murder and later died in hospital, published a week ago an article about former colonel Yuri Budanov in the edition named "Personal Correspondent".

Advocate Liudmila Tikhomirova, who represented at Yuri Budanov's trial the interests of Rosa Bashaeva (mother of the lost Elza Kungaeva), believes that the murder of advocate Stanislav Markelov is to advantage of "those who want discord between Chechens and Russian."

A rally is now on in the Peoples' Friendship Square in the capital of Chechnya in connection with the murder in Moscow of well-known advocate Stanislav Markelov.

Today, at the Supreme Court of Dagestan, jurymen have found Rasil Mamedrizaev guilty of murdering Farid Babaev, leader of the Dagestan branch of the "Yabloko" Party, and completely acquitted the other defendant - Seferali Semimerzoev, the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent reports.

Ombudsman Armen Arutyunyan has addressed Alik Sarkisyan, chief of the police of the Republic of Armenia with a demand to punish the police officers who commanded the dispersal of peaceful demonstrators on January 16.

Yesterday, on January 19, it became known about a new kidnapping in Chechnya. This time, a resident of the city of Gudermes, aged 24, became the victim of the crime committed back in early January.

Former Budanov's advocate Alexei Dulimov, who defended his interests in the court of the cassation instance, has stated that Colonel Yuri Budanov has nothing to do with the murder of Stanislav Markelov, advocate of the Kungaev family.

Novruzali Mamedov, 70, head of the Talysh Cultural Centre and editor-in-chief of the newspaper "Tolyshi Sado" (Voice of Talysh), who was sentenced to 10 years of imprisonment for "state treason", was transferred from Investigatory Isolation Facility No. 1 to Penitentiary Establishment No. 15.

Russian human rights activists are shocked by the murder of lawyer Stanislav Markelov, who worked in the cases of Budanov and "Cadet" related to murders of peaceful Chechen residents.

Aslambek Apaev, expert of the Moscow Helsinki Group and Chairman of the Committee in Defence of Forced Migrants' Rights, told in his interview to the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent that after his meeting in Ingushetia with refugees from Northern Ossetia he and other human rights activists were shadowed by unknown people in a car that had no identification symbols.

All the facts evidence that Stanislav Markelov was killed because of his professional work. This was told to the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent by Cyril Koroteev, lawyer-consultant of the Human Rights Society "Memorial".

Valery Khatazhukov, head of the Kabardino-Balkarian Public Human Rights Centre, believes that the murder of Stanislav Markelov, advocate of the Kungaev family, is an attempt to intimidate human rights activists. This is a political murder, he is convinced.

Stanislav Markelov, advocate of the Kungaev family, was shot dead today point-blank in the centre of Moscow. Yesterday, he took part in the press conference held at the Independent Press Centre on early release of former colonel Yuri Budanov from the colony, where he served his term for murdering Chechen girl Elza Kungaeva.